The statistics will tell us that close to 2/3 of young adults in the Evangelical church will leave the church by the age of 23, many never to return again. For those that will return, they will do so by the age of 30; that's a seven year gap, a gap that is becoming extremely difficult to shorten. My issue is not how long young adults are away from church, but rather why do they leave in the first place. As I do often, I began asking this question to a number of friends who have left the church (this being the church at large) and what I found was very different then what I expected to hear.
To my surprise, many who have "left the church" have not completely disconnected from God. Many still claim to have a healthy prayer life, still read scriptures daily, and spend time listening to worship music on their iPods. They also claim to experience growth through the teachings they receive via podcast. Now, I'm not saying that all of this isn't true; however I am challenged with the idea that we, the children of God can operate healthily by simply depending on our impulse to connect with God. Understand that I'm not saying it is impossible but it's not the way we grow.From a Biblical point of view, we all have been entrusted with living out our own walk with God for ourselves. I know that we are responsible for our faith journey and how we react to the prompting of God for us. I know that no one can get us into heaven; however we have all been given men and women that are anointed to be part of our faith journey. This is the issue I have with those who believe they can do it outside of the body. We have been given the honor of serving alongside each other, not in isolation. We have the privilege of connecting with our brothers and sisters for the sake of strengthening each other; yet if we are depending on simply living out our faith on our own, we will rarely have the opportunity to connect with others and serve the body.
My belief is that we need the local church and its leaders to grow us, to empower, us, to train us and to release us in our calling. For those who think otherwise, for every man or women of God who made a difference in history there was always someone who had the anointing to pull their gifting out of them. Samuel had Eli who commanded him to give him the Word of the Lord (1 Samuel 3:11-18); Moses had Jethro (his Father-in-law who was a priest) who instructed him how to delegate the burden of leadership to others (Exodus 18:17-23); Jesus had John the Baptist who prepared the way for His public ministry (Isaiah 40:3, Malachi 3:1, Matthew 3:3); Paul had Barnabas who vouched for him before the apostles and mentored him for the work of ministry (Acts 9:27); and we, now have the Five-Fold Ministry Leaders (Ephesians 4:11-15).
I commend young adults for continuing their faith journey; however I would encourage them to seek God in His temple, among His people, as one body. The challenge with doing Christianity outside of the local church framework (whatever that might look like) is that we tend to become isolated and somewhat critical about the body. We see ourselves as outsiders from the body, when we were always meant to be right in the center of it. This “iPod Jesus” is good for ongoing edification, but if this is what someone is solely relying on for spiritual growth it will do more harm than good. The body needs young adults to engage in its ongoing mobility for the kingdom’s sake. There is innovation, creativity, leadership, strategy and power in you. My prayer for young adults is that you would reconnect to the body. Don't throw the church out the window because you have had a bad experience. In fact, you should go harder and deeper after what God has called you to do. Bring change to what needs change. Do it in collaboration with local church leaders. Let your gifts and talents shine for the kingdom in ways that are yet to be seen.
THE CHURCH OF GOD NEEDS YOU IN THIS HOUR!
by Ed Pacheco, Jr.
My Leadership Journey
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